Global Peace Index 2026 - Identifying and measuring the factors that drive peace - executive summary

Sep 14, 2026

The 2026 Global Peace Index (GPI) reports a continued deterioration in global peacefulness, with armed conflict identified as the dominant driver of decline. More active state-based conflicts are present than at any point since World War II, and the share of countries involved in external conflict has nearly doubled since 2008. The index also highlights rising military expenditure, persistently high conflict deaths, and fragile, militarised international conditions shaped by recent wars. The report analyses peace’s economic value and uses 23 indicators across societal safety, conflict levels, and militarisation domains.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages125

Reading Time5 h 15 min

AccessFree to download

Executive Summary

Key Findings

Results

2026 Global Peace Index Rankings

Regional Overview

Improvements and Deteriorations

Trends

GPI Trends

Domain Trends

Geopolitical Trends: The Rise of the Middle Powers

The Economic Value of Peace and the Impact of Violence

Trends in the Economic Impact of Violence

Methodology at a Glance

Economic Impact of the Iran War

How Conflicts Spread

Mechanisms of Conflict Spread

The Horn of Africa: Conflict Spread as a Regional System

The Iran War as a Regional Shock

AI, War and Peace

AI in Modern Warfare: Ukraine, Gaza, Iran

Future Warfare Risks

AI Concentration and Governance

AI for Peace

Appendices

Appendix A: GPI Methodology

Appendix B: GPI Indicator Sources, Definitions & Scoring Criteria

Appendix C: GPI Domain Scores

Endnotes

Identifying and measuring the factors that drive peace Global Peace Index 2026 |
| Results
& Trends | Conflict
Spread | Economic Impact | | AI, Conflict,
and Peace | | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | Quantifying Peace and its Benefits The Institute for Economics & Peace (IEP) is an independent, non-partisan, non-profit think tank dedicated to shifting the world’s focus to peace as a positive, achievable, and tangible measure of human well-being and progress. IEP achieves its goals by developing new conceptual frameworks to define peacefulness; providing metrics for measuring peace; and uncovering the relationships between business, peace and prosperity as well as promoting a better understanding of the cultural, economic and political factors that create peace. IEP is headquartered in Sydney, with offices in New York, The Hague, Abuja, Nairobi and Manila. It works with a wide range of partners internationally and collaborates with intergovernmental organisations on measuring and communicating the economic value of peace. [For more information visit www.economicsandpeace.org](For more information visit www.economicsandpeace.org) [Please cite this report as:](Please cite this report as:) Institute for Economics & Peace. Global Peace Index 2026: Identifying and measuring the factors that drive peace, Sydney, June 2026. Available from: [http://visionofhumanity.org/resources](http://visionofhumanity.org/resources) (accessed Date Month Year). | Contents | | | | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | | Executive Summary
Key Findings | | 2 4 | | | 1 Results | | 7 | | | 2026 Global Peace Index Rankings | | 8 | | | Results | | 10 | | | Regional Overview | | 15 | | | Improvements and Deteriorations | | 26 | | | 2 | Trends
GPI Trends
Domain Trends
Geopolitical Trends: The Rise of the Middle Powers | 32
34
35
40 | | | 3 EThecVaonlue~~ ~~ofoPeamce~~ ~~inc025~~ ~~Impact~~ ~~of~~ ~~Violence | | 48
50 | | | Trends in the Economic Impact of Violence | | 52 | | | Methodology at a Glance | | 58 | | | Economic Impact of the Iran War | | 59 | | | 4 How Conflicts Spread | | 72 | | | Introduction | | 74 | | | Mechanisms of Conflict Spread | | 76 | | | The Horn of Africa: Conflict Spread as a Regional System | | 81 | | | The Iran War as a Regional Shock | | 87 | | | 5 v,ie~~ ~~and~~ ~~Peace | | 88
90 | | | AI in Modern Warfare: Ukraine, Gaza, Iran | | 91 | | | Future Warfare Risks | | 94 | | | AI Concentration and Governance | | 96 | | | AI for Peace | | 98 | | | 6 Appendices | | 100 | | | Appendix A: GPI Methodology | | 101 | | | Appendix B: GPI Indicator Sources, Definitions & Scoring Criteria | | 105 | | | Appendix C: GPI Domain Scores | | 112 | | | Endnotes | | 115 | | | | | | Global Peace Index 2026 | Measuring peace in a complex world | Executive Summary | | | --- | --- | | The 2026 Global Peace Index (GPI) finds that the world has continued its longstanding trajectory of deteriorating peacefulness, with armed conflict the dominant driver of the decline. There are now more active state-based conflicts than at any point since the end of the Second World War, while the number of countries involved in external conflict has nearly doubled since 2008.
World military expenditure has risen for the 10th consecutive year. While total deaths from conflict have declined from their 2023 peak, the past year still recorded the second highest number of conflict deaths since the inception of the Index nearly two decades ago. The civil war in Sudan, the protracted conflict in Ukraine, and the brief but consequential Twelve-Day War between Israel, the United States, and Iran have left the international environment in a more fragile and militarised state than at any point in the life of the Index.
This is the 20th edition of the GPI, which ranks 163 independent states and territories according to their level of peacefulness, covering 99

FAQs

What does the Global Peace Index 2026 say about global peacefulness trends?

The 2026 GPI finds the world continues a long-standing trajectory of deteriorating peacefulness, with armed conflict driving much of the decline.

How many countries and territories does the 2026 GPI rank, and what population coverage does it provide?

The 2026 GPI ranks 163 independent states and territories and covers 99.7% of the world’s population.

Which domains and indicators does the report use to measure peace?

The report uses 23 qualitative and quantitative indicators across three domains: societal safety and security, ongoing domestic and international conflict, and militarisation.

Sep 14, 2026

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